Poker Adventure
So last night, Rich, Drew & I decided to celebrate my birthday by heading up to Mohegan Sun to experience their first night with a poker room. From the word go it was obvious that they were still working out some kinks, especially with the dealers. They were all new and making rookie mistakes (not moving the dealer button, forgetting to make sure blinds were posted, etc.)
I decided to enter into a Sit & Go tournament. Sit & Gos are different from regular tournaments in that they are usually just one table (9 or 10 players) and don't have a set start time; they just begin once the table is full. I ended the tournament in 3rd place, essentially winning back my entry fee. But a dealer mistake cost me, maybe even costing me the tournament.
The dealer for our tournament was actually pretty good. His one fault was in the actual dealing of the cards. He would often (on average once/revolution of the table) deal a card in a way that it would flip up and reveal itself. The casino's rule if this happened was that the dealer would continue dealing out cards, then once done would replace the exposed card and the exposed card would be discarded.
So, we were down to five players left. I was in the first position after the big blind (meaning I would have to be first to decide if I wanted to call, raise or fold). When he dealt me my second card, it flipped over, revealing itself to be the Kc. He finished the deal and then replaced my card. I looked at my two cards and saw an ace of clubs Ac and my replacement card was a 6d. Meaning that instead of having AK suited (the 3rd best starting hand), I now had A-6 off-suit; not a bad hand, but not a good hand if you're first to act, which I was. So I did the right thing and I folded. The guy next to me raised, the guy after him called and everyone else folded.
The flop came down Ah-Ad-9c. Had I stayed in, I would've had 3 aces. I never found out what the other two guys had because one bet and the other folded. But I probably would've had them both beat.
After the tournament was done, I went to the card room boss (who was actually a really nice guy and had been talking with me before the tournament started). I stressed to him that I understand it was their first day and all the guys were new and that I wasn't wrangling for any more money. I then told him the story and gave him my opinion of what should be done in that situation if it happens again (dealing stops immediately and the player must choose right away wither to keep it or not).
After the tournament I went and let video poker take some of my money. Then Drew & I went to Johnny Rockets for some totally unhealthy food (no calories on your birthday, right?). All in all I had a blast and can't wait to go up there again.
I decided to enter into a Sit & Go tournament. Sit & Gos are different from regular tournaments in that they are usually just one table (9 or 10 players) and don't have a set start time; they just begin once the table is full. I ended the tournament in 3rd place, essentially winning back my entry fee. But a dealer mistake cost me, maybe even costing me the tournament.
The dealer for our tournament was actually pretty good. His one fault was in the actual dealing of the cards. He would often (on average once/revolution of the table) deal a card in a way that it would flip up and reveal itself. The casino's rule if this happened was that the dealer would continue dealing out cards, then once done would replace the exposed card and the exposed card would be discarded.
So, we were down to five players left. I was in the first position after the big blind (meaning I would have to be first to decide if I wanted to call, raise or fold). When he dealt me my second card, it flipped over, revealing itself to be the Kc. He finished the deal and then replaced my card. I looked at my two cards and saw an ace of clubs Ac and my replacement card was a 6d. Meaning that instead of having AK suited (the 3rd best starting hand), I now had A-6 off-suit; not a bad hand, but not a good hand if you're first to act, which I was. So I did the right thing and I folded. The guy next to me raised, the guy after him called and everyone else folded.
The flop came down Ah-Ad-9c. Had I stayed in, I would've had 3 aces. I never found out what the other two guys had because one bet and the other folded. But I probably would've had them both beat.
After the tournament was done, I went to the card room boss (who was actually a really nice guy and had been talking with me before the tournament started). I stressed to him that I understand it was their first day and all the guys were new and that I wasn't wrangling for any more money. I then told him the story and gave him my opinion of what should be done in that situation if it happens again (dealing stops immediately and the player must choose right away wither to keep it or not).
After the tournament I went and let video poker take some of my money. Then Drew & I went to Johnny Rockets for some totally unhealthy food (no calories on your birthday, right?). All in all I had a blast and can't wait to go up there again.